Episode 711: Reading Beyond Books

Welcome to Reading With Libraries!

Thank you for joining us on the SEVENTH SEASON of our Reader’s Advisory podcast! We are so glad you’re here to join us. We always enjoy our book group podcast, and we hope you do, too! It’s hard to be an expert on ALL of the great books out there! So we pick a new genre each week to chat about and hopefully provide you with some insight into what may be an unfamiliar genre!

This week we have an interesting development in the book group discussion: Reading, but not reading books! Of course, we love books. But today we want to talk about some other strategies for reading, and writing, that we can promote in libraries.

And we have a good Guest Host to help us do this! Noah Lenstra is an Assistant Professor of Library and Information Science at University of North Carolina Greensboro. He is also the founder of the Let’s Move in Libraries organization.

Their website gives a lot of good information: “Everyone has a role to play in increasing healthy living, including libraries! Let’s Move in Libraries is an international initiative to get people of all ages and abilities on the path to health. With their impressive reach and great potential for impact, public libraries can and do support healthy communities through StoryWalks®, seed collections, Yoga classes, gardens, cooking classes, and much, much more. Through Let’s Move in Libraries, public libraries can come together with partners to answer the call to action.”

Thanks for joining us today Noah!

Beverages:

Each week we like to connect the theme of our discussion with our beverages! This week we are enjoying some healthy drinks. You can grab one of the recipes we will share here, or enjoy something of your own. Stay hydrated while we enjoy some good reading discussions! Our recipes today are from the BBC’s Good Food website.

Turmeric latte

Jazz up brunch or breakfast with this golden latte. Studies suggest the curcumin in turmeric has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects

Ingredients
Method
  • STEP 1
    Put all the ingredients in a saucepan and whisk constantly over a gentle heat, ideally with a milk frother if you have one. Once hot, pour into mugs and sprinkle with a little more cinnamon to serve.

Avocado & strawberry smoothie

A creamy breakfast-friendly blend that’s high in calcium and low in calories.

Ingredients
  • ½ avocado , stoned, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 150g strawberry , halved
  • 4 tbsp low-fat natural yogurt
  • 200ml semi-skimmed milk
  • lemon or lime juice , to taste
  • honey , to taste
Method
  • STEP 1
    Put all the ingredients in a blender and whizz until smooth. If the consistency is too thick, add a little water.

Avocado smoothie

This easy smoothie gets its vibrant green colour from avocado, cucumber, spinach and kale. Blitz with pineapple and coconut water.

Ingredients
  • ½ avocado , peeled, stoned and roughly chopped
  • generous handful spinach
  • generous handful kale , washed well
  • 50g pineapple chunks
  • 10cm piece cucumber , roughly chopped
  • 300ml coconut water
Method
  • STEP 1
    Put the avocado, spinach, kale, pineapple and cucumber in the blender.
  • STEP 2
    Top up with coconut water, then blitz until smooth.

Genre Discussion:

It’s not a secret here: we love reading! We want to encourage more of it for everyone, and we strongly believe in not restricting anyone to some arbitrary standard of “right” books or “proper” things to read. We have promoted books for all ages, and in all formats. We have said this many times: it is wrong, and very bad library practice, to restrict readers to a level identified by publishers, or anyone else. Let readers, whether they are students or anyone else, pick their own reading material. It is good to provide some help in getting the material they want; but it is nobody’s business if someone wants to read above or below a randomly-assigned level.

And of course: there is much more to the practice of reading than just identifying books! In any kind of library work, it’s important to remember that you and your reading habits may not be typical. A lot of us got into this profession because we like to read, and it was pretty easy for us. It’s good to remember that many of your patrons, and students, may not enjoy reading. It may be hard for them for all kinds of reasons. And they may just not connect with books in your library. That’s okay – we are here to support reading of all sorts!

Here are a few suggestions from Scholastic to move your reading, and reading for your kids, beyond the pages of books:

  • Magazines. There are lots of great magazines for kids, both at the newsstand and available for digital downloads.     
  • Comics. Don’t discount the power of comics to hook kids on reading. They are a great way to teach your children about the back and forth of dialog.         
  • Manuals. For kids who want to know how things work, manuals for things like cars, lawnmowers, and appliances can be great options — and they build vocabulary, too.
  • Newspapers. If you are worried about exposing your child to news articles about crime or traumatic events, choose a local community newspaper or give your child a specific section to read that you’ve already vetted.
  • Poetry. Grab a collection of poems or sit down and write some with your children. Rhyming is an important skill for reading, and having your children write poems on their own is a great way to build that skill.
  • Travel Brochures. They can plan fantasy vacations and learn a bit of geography, too.
  • Sports Programs. Hold on to the programs that you are given at sporting events and let your kids read and reread about their favorite athletes and teams.
  • Catalogs. Many catalogs now are so much more than just products and quick descriptions. Have your child make wish lists and fit in a little writing, too.
  • Books They Write! Nothing is as powerful as reading their own writing. Encourage your child to write, and his reading will get a boost, too

Suggested Reading Resources:

Our Book Discussion

We have our beverages, we are familiar with this week’s genre, let’s get to the discussion! 

Model – https://www.thewalkingclassroom.org/ 

Steel Magnate Andrew Carnegie’s First Library Lives On

The Braddock Carnegie Library opened in 1889, equipped with a swimming pool, billiards room, theater and bowling alley. Nearly demolished in the 1970s, the library is undergoing a massive renovation, thanks to local help.

Library-Gymnasium Movement in Utah

Highlighting a government commission’s report on a progressive/reform movement. Presentation originally given in 2011.

https://penguinrandomhouselibrary.com/librarian-resources/webinar-archive/library-lunch-learn/SEASON 1: EPISODE #1, January 14th, 2021: We kicked off the FIRST episode of our new Library Lunch & Learn series around the theme of New Year, New You. Miriam and Kelly spoke with guest authors Dr. Noah Lenstra, Dianne Bondy, Kat Heagberg, Lisa Genova, and Tom Vanderbilt who shared their health and wellness insights. Click here to watch an archive. Click here for a list of recommended titles on Edelweiss and audio companions on BooksonTape.com.

Conclusion:

Thank you so much for joining us on Reading With Libraries! 

Special thanks to our Guest Host, Noah! We’re so glad you were able to join us today!

Join us next Thursday with another genre, more guest hosts for our book group, and more books to share and discuss. Be sure to subscribe to our podcast so you don’t miss a single episode! And if you want to hear more about the work we do in libraries or expand your library skills, check out our podcast Linking Our Libraries!

Bring your book ideas, bring your beverages, and join us back here on Thursday!